Counterfeit watches seized at Los Angeles International Airport

Fake Rolexes seized from a counterfeit batch of expensive watches on August 8, 2013.

August 27, 2013 12:00:00 AM PDT

LOS ANGELES INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT --

Customs officers seized 215 counterfeit watches from a Chinese shipment at LAX with an estimated face value of $1.25 million.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized the air cargo shipment on August 8. The shipment was marked "watches," weighed 68 pounds and had a declared value of $173.

The watches were counterfeit versions of Rolex, Louis Vuitton, Cartier and Omega. If the watches were genuine, the estimated retail price would amount to $1.25 million.

Approximately $1.26 billion worth of counterfeit goods originating overseas were seized by CBP in 2012.

With an estimated manufacturer's suggested retail price of $186 million, watches and jewelry ranked as a top-five commodity seized by CBP in fiscal year 2012. In the same period, watches and jewelry represented eight percent of the total number of seizures by CBP nationwide.